Campaign donor seeks to kill Arizona's Clean Elections

An Arizona attorney is hoping voters will help him kill the state's public campaign-finance system for the sake of education.

Mark Goldman, who along with his wife is a consistent donor to Republican political campaigns, including those of Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and Gov. Doug Ducey, has submitted paperwork to begin gathering signatures for what he calls the Clean Elections Reform Act.

The statewide ballot initiative proposes to take the money from the 10 percent surcharges imposed on civil and criminal fines now going to the state's Citizens Clean Elections Fund and instead put it into the Classroom Site Fund.

The surcharges in 2015 brought in about $8 million.

“For too long the taxpayers of Arizona have funded the political campaigns of the political elite, while not ensuring enough money is making its way into the classroom," Goldman said in a statement.

He described his initiative as the next step beyond the passage of "important first step" Proposition 123, Ducey's school-funding plan going before voters on May 17.

Consultant Brian Murray said the intent is to simultaneously defund Clean Elections and help education.

"Any money for politicians instead of kids is a misappropriation of funds," Murray said.

To qualify for the ballot, the proposal would require petitioners to gather more than 150,000 signatures by July 7.

Arizona voters approved the creation of Clean Elections in 1998. Participating candidates collect a certain number of $5 donations and agree not to accept money from special-interest groups in exchange for a lump sum of public money to fund their campaigns. Republican lawmakers have tried unsuccessfully numerous times in recent years to kill the program. About 30 percent of candidates in 2014 ran as Clean Elections candidates.

The state allocates money from the Classroom Site Fund to districts and charter schools to be used specifically for teacher salaries and raises, and in the classrooms for efforts such as reducing class sizes.